Wakarusa 2012 Preview

Like the river that gave it its name, Wakarusa Music and Camping Festival is smack in the middle of the U.S. of A.Originally in Lawrence, Kansas before moving to the Ozarks in 2009 (QRO photos from last year in Kansas), Wakarusa has only grown, and is now one of the biggest and most important jam festivals in the world.

Sprawling over four days, Thursday-to-Sunday, May 31st to June 3rd, Wakarusa features a wide range of acts on five stages – and many play more than once at the festival:

Combining yesterday, today, and tomorrow, Bob Weir of The Grateful Dead (QRO photos at a festival) and much more, Chris Robinson of The Black Crowes (QRO photos at same festival), and The New York Times‘ ‘Prince of Americana’ Jackie Greene team up at Wakarusa.

Railroad Earth, 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM

Stillwater, New Jersey’s Railroad Earth take in not just staple jam influences but also such farther styles from jazz to Celtic, expect live improvisation as well (QRO photos at a festival).

Also Friday at Revival Tent, 10:00 PM – 11:45 PM

Also:

ALO, 4:30 PM – 6:00 PM

The Big Wu, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM

Revival Tent

SAVOY, 2:30 AM – 4:00 AM

European-style rave act SAVOY brings the house music to Wakarusa.

Tea Leaf Green, 12:30 AM – 2:00 AM

It may not be fair to compare Tea Leaf Green (QRO photos at a festival) to The Grateful Dead, but other than starting in the nineties and not the sixties (and all still being alive), it’s all there: Came out of the Bay Area?Check.Endlessly touring, festival favorite jam band?Check.A dedicated fan base that record their live shows?Check.

The sprawling Motet crisscrosses genres as they crisscross the country.

Also Friday at Kum & Go Outpost, 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM

Rubblebucket, 7:15 PM – 8:15 PM

Brooklyn indie-dance outfit Rubblebucket (QRO live review) fit into any line-up, from ultra-hipster to jam.Known for electric live shows (QRO live review), the group comes to Wakarusa behind 2010’s Omega La La (QRO review).

One of the bigger – and better – hits of today’s new Americana, The Avett Brothers (QRO photos) won a wide audience with 2009’s fine country of I and Love and You (QRO review), including playing on The Grammys with Bob Dylan.

The Netherlands has been proficient with the electronic dance mavens, such as Paul Van Dyk and Armin Van Buuren (QRO live review at a festival) – and now the newest generation in Nobody Beats the Drum.

The ‘progressive improvisation’ of Umphrey’s McGee (QRO photos at a festival) combines the live ways of such hippie legends as Phish and The Dead, with often-changing set lists, heavy live jam sessions, fanatic fans recording. Their more progressive-inspired music makes them a festival mainstay.

Also Saturday at Main Stage, 8:30 PM – 10:30 PM

Railroad Earth, 10:00 PM – 11:45 PM

Stillwater, New Jersey’s Railroad Earth take in not just staple jam influences but also such farther styles from jazz to Celtic, expect live improvisation as well (QRO photos at a festival).

Also Thursday at Main Stage, 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM

Blitzen Trapper, 8:00 PM – 9:30 PM

While some of the ‘sweet seventies’ revival has been overhyped [cough-Fleet Foxes-QRO album review-cough], Portland’s Blitzen Trapper (QRO photos) deserve their praise, as they add in some freak to their folk. After self-releasing their first three records (including 2007’s Wild Mountain Nation – QRO review), they signed to Sub Pop for the excellent Furr (QRO review), 2010’s Destroyer of the Void (QRO review), and last year’s American Goldwing (QRO review). And their live show (QRO live review) has stayed strong.

San Francisco’s rock-jam New Monsoon are influenced by everything from jazz to Indian music.

Also Thursday at Revival Tent, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM

The Motet, 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM

The sprawling Motet crisscrosses genres as they crisscross the country.

Also Thursday at Revival Tent, 8:45 PM – 10:00 PM

Rubblebucket, 5:30 PM – 6:30 PM

Brooklyn indie-dance outfit Rubblebucket (QRO live review) fit into any line-up, from ultra-hipster to jam.Known for electric live shows (QRO live review), the group comes to Wakarusa behind 2010’s Omega La La (QRO review).

Also Thursday at Revival Tent, 7:15 PM – 8:15 PM

Assembly of Dust, 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM

A nice jam band for a more mature set, Assembly of Dust (QRO photos) is a festival mainstay.

Also:

Snarky Puppy, 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM

Monophonics, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM

SATURDAY, JUNE 2ND

Main StageBig Gigantic, 1:00 AM – 2:30 AM (Interstellar Sanctum)

Boulder’s Big Gigantic mix (big) electronic beats with live drums and even live saxo-mo-phone.

Primus, 11:00 PM – 12:15 AM

Mixing alternative and funk in a Frizzle Fry sauce is Les Claypool’s (QRO interview) Primus (QRO spotlight on). Fronted by one of the most acclaimed bassists out there today, Primus first came to widespread notice in the early nineties thanks to Sailing the Seas of Cheese (QRO live review) and Pork Soda, with songs like “Jerry Was a Race Car Driver”, “Tommy the Cat”, “My Name Is Mud”, and “Mr. Krinkle”, delivering a weird funk-driven rock sound akin to an accessible Residents (QRO live review). Primus went on hiatus at the start of this century/millennium (after composing the theme to South Park), with Claypool working solo (QRO photos at a festival – and composed the theme to Robot Chicken), before reforming, first as nostalgia, but then with last year’s new Green Naugahyde (QRO review), and have kept on going strong (QRO photos).

Umphrey’s McGee, 8:30 PM – 10:30 PM

The ‘progressive improvisation’ of Umphrey’s McGee (QRO photos at a festival) combines the live ways of such hippie legends as Phish and The Dead, with often-changing set lists, heavy live jam sessions, fanatic fans recording. Their more progressive-inspired music makes them a festival mainstay.

Also Friday at Revival Tent, 12:15 AM – 2:00 AM

Slightly Stoopid, 6:15 PM – 7:45 PM

Coming out of the melting pot of mid-nineties SoCal, thanks to being discovered by Sublime’s late frontman Bradley Nowell (while the band was still in high school), Slightly Stoopid (QRO photos outdoors) have lived out Nowell’s sunbaked combination of punk, reggae, rock, and hip-hop.Their loyal fan base has let them stay outside the major label system, while still filling venues worldwide, and being very active on the festival circuit.

Also Sunday at Revival Tent, 8:00 PM – 9:30 PM

Fitz & The Tantrums, 4:30 PM – 5:45 PM

While acts like Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings (QRO album review) revive the soul sound, Los Angeles’ Fitz & The Tantrums (QRO photos) are reinventing it with an indie-pop twist.

G. Love & Special Sauce, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM

Since coming out of Philadelphia in the nineties, G. Love (real name: Garrett Dutton) & Special Sauce have become festival mainstays, thanks to their ‘sloppy’ hip-hop/blues, which fits well with the laid-back festival crowd. They’ve also nicely balanced mainstream appeal, most recently with last year’s Fixin’ To Die (QRO review), not to mention appearing in a Coca-Cola commercial, with their own version of “I’d Like To Teach the World To Sing” in 2005, and their own style.

Balkan Beat Box, 1:30 PM – 2:30 PM

Originally mixing Brooklyn punk with Israeli klezmer, Balkan Beat Box have forged a style all their own, that even brings in hip-hop and dancehall.

Also Friday at Kum & Go Outpost, 12:30 AM – 2:00 AM

Revival Tent

Nobody Beats the Drum, 4:15 AM – 5:15 AM

The Netherlands has been proficient with the electronic dance mavens, such as Paul Van Dyk and Armin Van Buuren (QRO live review at a festival) – and now the newest generation in Nobody Beats the Drum.

Also Friday at Revival Tent, 4:15 AM – 5:00 AM

Beats Antique, 2:15 AM – 3:45 AM

World fusion electronica act Beats Antique not only fuses styles of music, but also styles of dance, including that of the belly.

Quixotic, 12:30 AM – 1:45 AM

Music meets dance, acrobatics, and visuals as Quixotic.

Also Thursday at Main Stage, 1:00 AM – 2:15 AM (Interstellar Sanctum)

The Sheepdogs, 10:30 PM – 11:45 PM

Last year, Rolling Stone ran a ‘Choose the Cover’ contest for the first unsigned band to ever appear on the venerable magazine’s cover, and the winner was Saskatoon’s The Sheepdogs (QRO photos at a Canadian festival, two days before winning the contest).However, the group (QRO photos) was unsigned more due to location than sound, as their seventies guitar-rock isn’t entirely original, but is popular – they’ve since signed to Atlantic Records…

For truly world music, check out Tinariwen.The group of Tuareg-Berber musicians came out of the Sahara deserts of northern Mali (currently in revolt against recent military coup in the south of the country, as the unrecognized separate state of Azawad) following time in the refugee camps in Libya.They’ve been in Qaddafi training camps, served as rebel fighters, all the while making and spreading music about their people.The new century/millennium saw the group finally get attention around the world, including big-name fans like Bono & Thom Yorke, and reached the pinnacle last year – performing on The Colbert Report (with TV On the Radio – QRO live review).

Producer/DJ/performer Ramble John ‘RJ’ Krohn, or RJD2 (QRO photos), comes to Wakarusa. While he got his start in instrumentals & production, 2007’s The Third Hand (QRO review) saw him stretch out into a full-fledged act of his own (QRO photos at a festival), including singing, and has kept it going with 2010’s The Colossus (QRO review).

Everyone’s favorite Jewish reggae/alternative/hip-hop artist (QRO photos at a festival) will also provide plenty of moments for dancing, but these moments are more of the lets all hold hands and sway back and forth because if this very Jewish man (QRO photos on Hanukah) can make reggae sound this good, then anything is possible (QRO photos at a festival).

Slightly Stoopid, 8:00 PM – 9:30 PM

Coming out of the melting pot of mid-nineties SoCal, thanks to being discovered by Sublime’s late frontman Bradley Nowell (while the band was still in high school), Slightly Stoopid (QRO photos outdoors) have lived out Nowell’s sunbaked combination of punk, reggae, rock, and hip-hop.Their loyal fan base has let them stay outside the major label system, while still filling venues worldwide, and being very active on the festival circuit.

Also Saturday at Main Stage, 6:15 PM – 7:45 PM

SOJA, 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM

SOJA mix reggae with more modern sounds on such records as Soldiers of the Jah Army, Peace In a Time of War, and its remix version, Dub In a Time of War.

For truly world music, check out Tinariwen.The group of Tuareg-Berber musicians came out of the Sahara deserts of northern Mali (currently in revolt against recent military coup in the south of the country, as the unrecognized separate state of Azawad) following time in the refugee camps in Libya.They’ve been in Qaddafi training camps, served as rebel fighters, all the while making and spreading music about their people.The new century/millennium saw the group finally get attention around the world, including big-name fans like Bono & Thom Yorke, and reached the pinnacle last year – performing on The Colbert Report (with TV On the Radio – QRO live review).